Overview
The Kings Advanced Level Foundation is
based on A-level syllabuses, taught by
A-level teachers, assessed against A-levels
and moderated by an independent Advisory
Board of external examiners. As such, it is one
of the most highly academic and successful
pathways to leading UK universities.
Communication and Study Skills is a compulsory module within the Foundation, and is designed to help prepare students for the rigours of university study in the UK.
Key Facts
- 8 April 2024 (Extended programme only)
- 1 July 2024 (Extended programme only)
- 9 September 2024
- 6 January 2025
- Bournemouth
- Brighton
- London
- Oxford
- Academic: Completed 11-12 years of schooling
- English: IELTS 5.5 or equivalent
- 1 Academic Year (3 terms)
- Extended programme: 1-2 Academic Years (4-7 terms)
- Average 21 hours per week (plus homework and private study)
Learning outcomes
- Self-organisation: study planning; timetable planning; prioritising; categorising; filing and recording.
- Selecting sources: reading lists and bibliographies; internet searches and key word scanning.
- Note-taking and summarising: outlining; mind-mapping; marking texts.
- Organisation of academic texts: contents, bibliography, appendices, citations, presentation, layout, graphics.
- Gauging the relevance of a written source to their academic requirements.
- Quoting and paraphrasing: identifying the main idea, identifying sources; distinguishing quoting from plagiarising
- Planning, formulating, organising and conveying own ideas clearly, coherently and succinctly in short or extended prose/speech.
- Debating, dictionary work, keeping vocabulary notebooks and learning vocabulary.
- Presenting written work correctly, observing the conventions of essay writing.
- Evaluating own writing/speech and performance.
- Using aids such as PowerPoint to reinforce presentations.
Course content and structure
The Advanced Level Foundation programme is highly flexible, and able to adapt to the needs and academic aspirations of each student. It does this through a combination of core
modules and a series of elective modules which can be combined in different ways to create main subject streams.
Communication and Study Skills is one of two compulsory modules, and an overview of the syllabus content is shown below.
Course structure and content
- Academic writing and an introduction to note-taking for listening and reading
- The process of writing: organising material coherently and effectively; incorporating material from several sources; credibility of source; considering the reader’s expectations
- Functional areas: description, clarification, narration, generalisation, argument
- Text construction; thesis, support, argument, conclusion
- Register
- Presentation skills
- Strategies and techniques for presentations: planning structure, making talk-notes; using visual aids.
- Linguistic, paralinguistic and phonological devices: framing; signposting; summarising; rephrasing; pausing; articulation and voice quality.
- Teamwork; asking and answering questions
- Effective reading
- Understanding text organisation and function
- Understanding vocabulary from contextual clues
- Evaluating the writer’s purpose and attitude
- Techniques for rapid reading
- Techniques for detailed reading
- Listening, note-taking and vocabulary
- Understanding the structure and organisation of lectures and talks
- Listening for the main idea, specific information and attitude
- Developing the skills of prediction, summarising and filtering information
- The character of spoken English in lectures and talks
- Developing topic specific vocabulary for academic subjects
Recommended reading
Below is a list of text books normally used on this course, as well as books which may help you prepare for your studies prior to arrival. In many cases the textbooks will be supplied by the school, and you may borrow them for the duration of your time at school.
- Learn To Listen, Listen To Learn by Roni S Lebauer (3rd Edition)
- Academic Writing Course by R. R Jordan (3rd Edition)
- Check Your IELTS Vocabulary Rawdon Wyatt (3rd Edition)
Sample academic calendar (2023-2024)
Year 1
- 11th: term starts
- Student induction
- 23 – 27th: half term
- Progress tests
- University fairs and talks
- 15th: term ends
- End of term exams
- 15th – 16th: half term
- Progress tests
- University fairs
- End of term exams
- 22nd: term ends
